The message of an Odontophorus marlothii leaf pair is that they have each other, no matter how harsh the living conditions inflicted by the Namaqualand climate.

Chunky and succulent, their embrace does not quite work, due to corpulence and the too strong resemblance of the multiple, small white arms to teeth set in hefty jaws. These teeth are whitish cones, wobbly and spaced along the margins.

The plant branches, growing a few leaf pairs per branch. The outer branches tend to grow longer after flowering. The dark dots scattered along the leaf surfaces are finely tuberculate and hairy.

The six species of the Odontophorus genus are all associated with the Steinkopf region of northern Namaqualand and the southern Richtersveld (Frandsen, 2017; Smith, et al, 1998; Herre, 1971; iNaturalist).